Be careful when you use specialized search engines to explore the Deep Web: its research value comes at the price of its many pitfalls. The Deep Web's bevy of scholarly material is interspersed with illegal material, like illicit drug sales sites, backdoors beyond website paywalls and even child pornography.

Hidden Search Results

Searching the Deep Web (also known as the "Deepnet" or "hidden Web") provides access to sites that are have not been indexed by search engines, including database entries. These searches often yield links you would never find through a source such as Google, as Google does not index database entries.

A Wretched Hive of Scum and Villainy

While the Deep Web contains a wealth of valuable information, especially for scholars, it's also a dark and dangerous place. The Deep Web's anonymity attracts criminal activity ranging from the sales of illegal drugs and weapons to the trading of child pornography and even the hiring of contract killers. The Deep Web even has an illicit version of eBay, known as The Silk Road, where all manner of illegal goods and services can be purchased. The Deep Web also contains information hidden behind the paywalls and security measures of some companies. If you access this information, you risk litigation or arrest for copyright infringement and violation of a site's terms of use.

Light in the Darkness

Despite the dangers of exploring the Deep Web, there are some other benefits aside from access to more research material. The Deep Web offers an avenue for expression, organization and the influx of information for people living under oppressive or restrictive regimes. Deep Web connections are anonymous and difficult to monitor, facilitating access to current news from around the globe without government filtering, "interpretation" or censorship.

The Right Tools for the Job

While Deep Web search engines like Infomine, CompletePlanet, Deep Dyve or TechXtra can locate hidden material, other tools may be needed to view it. Many Deep Web resources use ".onion" URLs, viewable only on browsers like Tor. Deep Web information can also be slower to access than surface Web information, dependent primarily on the speed of the databases being accessed. Deep Web resources also link differently than surface Web resources, creating a learning curve for beginners.

What's in a Name?

The Deep Web is sometimes referred to as the "Dark Web," because the illicit nature of much of its content. This term is somewhat erroneous however, as it is very similar and sometimes considered interchangeable with Dark Internet or Darknet, two very different things. Dark Internet refers to any Internet resource that can no longer be reached by conventional means, usually due to technical difficulties. Darknet refers to anonymous peer-to-peer filesharing networks that obscure the IP addresses of all connected users. While Dark Web may seem appropriate, Deep Web is more commonly used and less confusing. BrightPlanet founder Michael Bergman is credited with coining the term in a 2001 paper published in the Journal of Electronic Publishing.